Storage and organizational systems of the type in which a composition board with a plurality of holes is mounted vertically on a surface are well known in the art. These systems, known as pegboards, are often adapted to receive support devices, e.g., hook and peg members, which extend into the holes so that articles may be supported from the forwardly projecting portions of the support device.
Mounting a pegboard in a home typically requires securing the pegboard on a wall of the house. Typical walls in a home are often constructed of either plaster or gypsum board, and do not have sufficient structural strength alone to support a pegboard or the loads caused by items mounted on the pegboard. Installation thus usually involves locating the wall studs located behind the plaster or gypsum board, and fastening a framework through the plaster or gypsum board to one or more studs. The pegboard is then mounted on the framework by placing fasteners, e.g. screws, through several holes disbursed throughout the pegboard, and then driving each fastener into the frame, or through the frame and into a stud. Frames are often necessary to provide sufficient space between the back surface of the pegboard and the wall of the home so as to accommodate engagement portions of the support devices, e.g., hook and peg members, which extend into the holes so that articles may be supported from forwardly projecting portions of the support device.
This arrangement is not only aesthetically undesirable, but also requires mounting holes be provided solely for securing the pegboard to the vertical surface in the pegboard, which could otherwise receive additional support devices. Also, since loads will often be cantilevered to the front surface of the pegboard, the pegboard will be subject to torques which can deteriorate the strength and the stability of the pegboard as well as its connection to the supporting wall. The fact that a frame is often used is also disadvantageous in that additional time and materials beyond the purchase and installation of the pegboard itself must be expended. This situation is further exacerbated when pegboards of the type taught in U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,788, are employed.
More particularly, in pegboard systems such as are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,788, a perforated panel is provided in the form of a planer sheet of material, preferably formed of a metal or polymer, and having a plurality of regularly shaped perforations, disposed in a regular pattern throughout the panel. The perforations are each preferably formed so as to be defined by a circumferential edge, often forming a rectangular or square opening in the panel. The perforated panel is typically about one quarter to one half of an inch thick, with the perforations being arranged in a regular pattern through panel. Hooks having cantilevered latches are releasably snap-fit into these perforations to provide the same storage function as support devices on traditional pegboard systems.
These newer perforated pegboards need to be formed with a perceptible thickness in order to accommodate the cantilevered latches. This need creates difficulty when conventional mounting holes are provided in the board for mounting to vertical surfaces. Either a counter-sunk hole is required, or longer fasteners are needed to overcome the added thickness of these boards. This need results in the foregoing aesthetic issues and general difficulty in mounting the pegboard.